Nate Diaz has long been at odds with the UFC, and he’s not pleased with the way the announced matchup between him and Matt Brown was handled.
Last week the UFC formally announced a welterweight fight between Matt Brown and Nate Diaz (moving up from lightweight) for the big UFC 189 pay-per-view in July. Of course, this does involve a Diaz brother, so it’s virtually guaranteed to be anything but easy and straightforward. Shortly after last Wednesday’s announcement, Diaz said “nah I’m fighting [Anthony] Pettis” on Twitter. Matt Brown later posted (then deleted) an Instagram pic of what was supposedly his signed contract agreement.
On Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour on Monday, Diaz gave his side of the story regarding the Brown fight, continuing to emphasize that he never agreed to it.
“I was told the Brown fight was talked about but they were supposed to work out a deal and figure it all out, negotiate the fight the next Monday. Then all of a sudden (it’s announced),” Diaz said. “I never necessarily okayed the fight, the fight was never negotiated, and then all of a sudden I was getting …read more
Nate Diaz says he 'never negotiated' UFC 189 fight vs. Matt Brown - Bloody Elbow
"They just have the push power," Diaz said. "They say I'm fighting and I'm fighting now, so I don't know. I don't think so. It don't work like that. Maybe with all these other guys out here, but I think if you're going to fight somebody next Saturday, I'm not going to just say that you're going to fight somebody and assume you can show up. I'm probably going to call you and make sure you can show up, right? Talk about it.
"I haven't (talked to anybody), but if it was dealt with properly and the circumstances were better, then I'm all aboard. That'd be a great fight, especially with a fighter like that."
Nate Diaz feels he's being 'strong-armed' into Matt Brown fight - MMA Fighting